July 4

At work today at the bookstore, I found myself wishing customers a good holiday, consciously not saying “Happy Fourth of July.” It occurred to me later that the word holiday is, of course, shorthand for “holy day,” and I had to amend my well-wishing to “Have a good evening.” Alas, it is difficult to notice sometimes that we Christians take part in the empire’s subversion of our own theological language.

Canadian Bible John had some good comments on the 4th in an email to me today. I don’t think he’ll mind me posting the contents here:

Tomorrow is the 230th anniversary. Celebrate the US for what it could be, what it should be, what it claims to be: a land of freedom, democracy, care for others. A land where all are created equal, where are all accepted, where all are equal, where society exists for the good of all. When will America become America? Don’t settle for anything less.

Amen. And on that note, two stories were released today reporting strong words from Church leaders against war. For the second time this week, Pope Benedict XVI made reference to increasing violence in Iraq and in the Holy Land saying, “Faced, on the one hand, with blind violence that provokes appalling massacres and, on the other, with the threat of a worsening of the crisis which over the last few days has become even more dramatic, what is needed is justice and a serious and credible commitment to peace, which unfortunately are nowhere to be seen” (emphasis added).

Cardinal Renato Martino also had some strong statements in a speech given in Singapore last week:

“[Religion] must never become a pretext for fueling conflict, hatred and violence… [I]ndividuals and religious communities must clearly manifest a complete and radical rejection of violence, all violence, starting with the violence that would wrap itself in the mantle of religion, even appealing to the holy name of God as it commits offences against humanity” (emphasis added).

Let peace be our humble prayer in the midst of the proud feasting of empire.